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At what age should children stop wetting the bed?

Bedwetting – also known as nocturnal enuresis – affects most children up to the age of three as the development of bladder function control can be a slow process.

It’s a common problem, especially in the under-fives and according to figures published by the British Medical Journal, at the age of five as many as 20 children in 100 will have difficulty in controlling their bladders at night-time.

By age seven, this figure has dropped to around eight children in every 100, so we can see that most children will develop that vital mind/body link at around the age of six years.

It’s at this age that children enter a new developmental phase. A good indicator of this happening is the loss of milk teeth. So, if your child is still bedwetting at night and is starting to lose teeth, I’d recommend looking at ways of helping them to become dry at night, such as introducing the “Stop Bedwetting in 7 Days” system. It shows it’s the right time and will support your child’s natural development.

The research goes on to show that by age 10, there are still 5 children in every 100 experiencing problems. So, not much progress is made with children who are simply left waiting for nature to take its’ course.

Studies also show that bedwetting children who are given professional help and advice are more likely to become dry than those who aren’t. With one or two children in every 100 failing to achieve night-time dryness altogether, it is vitally important to get help at the right time.

Some children never quite ‘grow out’ of their bedwetting habit, despite being told by doctors and health practitioners that this will automatically happen. Prolonged childhood bedwetting that’s allowed to continue into adulthood can manifest itself in many ways: difficulties forming relationships and getting jobs, susceptibility to stress, anxiety and even depression.

So whilst there’s no ‘right’ age for becoming dry at night, in my opinion there’s certainly a ‘wrong’ age for leaving the situation unchecked. It is possible to point your child in the right direction and encourage them to change their habits and behaviours naturally in order to stop bedwetting.

Alicia Eaton is a Children’s Behavioural Specialist – a fully qualified Psychotherapist, Clinical Hypnotherapist and Licensed NLP Coach based in London’s Harley Street since 2004. She is the author of the best-selling “Stop Bedwetting in 7 days” book and video programme. You can read more about changing children’s habits and behaviours in her latest book:“Words that Work: How to Get Kids to Do Almost Anything”.